Jeep Liberty Real World MPG

Comments

I know the mpg computer is not extremely accurate but what does your read out to when you cruise at 60 and reset the console? Mine is always around 20-22 mpg but changes with wind and terrain. Around town maybe 15. You should make sure that you have the computer chip reprogamming procedure if you have a Liberty that is affected. Unless you get almost what you paid for it, you will never recover in depreciation what you lose in gas mileage swapping vehicles. For 10000 miles the difference between averaging 20mpg [impossible] and 15mpg at $2.75 a gallon is $258. You can adjust it anyway you want but mpg is rarely a sound reason for switching vehicles. If you like the Liberty, enjoy the ride and forget about the mpg. If not, swap it for something that does better and smile when you fill up but don't figure out what that switch really cost you.

Jayrider,Appreciate the comments and I agree to the huge loss in trading vehicles. It is more the issue that this small, but heavy, vehicle is so "thirsty" and the big machine, Jeep / Daimler-Chrysler, is unwilling to even offer any "words of wisdom". The typical "party line responses" get old. What iss the "computer chip reprogamming procedure" you mention? Is that a recall item and what years or Vin/s/n range vehicles were affected? Is this something that may improve the mileage?Thanks - Stingray

I went and looked at the Jeep website and there is shows the sport (either manual or automatic interestingly) as having a gear ratio of 3.55. The limited comes with a 3.73 ratio. So that should make the limiteds appear faster and less fuel efficent. I would have expected the automatics to all have the 3.73 but in any case if you were to replace the final drive gear (not too expensive to do since its in the rear pumpkin right?) to a yet higher ratio it should help mileage I would guess.

Thanks.Appreciate the opinion and tend to agree with the ratio theory. Down side to this is the frt. and rr. ring&pinion would need to be exchanged to maintain proper drive line balance. This becomes more complicated and expensive. Drive line wond-up, just like with different diameter tires, can be quite a problem. I do feel Jeep "screwed up" putting a 3.73 ratio in. A 3.48 or 3.55 would have been more appropriate. With this engine, they are too high in the Hp curve, compromising fuel economy. Naturally they will never admit to this, just like they ignore the whole issue with low mileage problem. I've talked with several other owners who have the same complaint.

I'm so happy, I had to tell someone! I have an 05 Liberty Renegade 4WD. Usually I get about 17 mpg in mixed driving (60fwy/40city). One tank was only 16.5, so I really babied it this week, using every driving trick I knew and got the mileage on my last tank up to 20.90 mpg. This is the absolute best mileage I've ever gotten. Now if I can get used to everyone blasting by me on the freeways and side roads, maybe I can do it again!

Heh, heh, congratulations! But its pretty sad that you have to work that hard to get 20 mpg. Did you try overinflating your tires? That's been the most effective thing for my Mustang on long trips. I'm interested in the Liberty's cousin the Dodge Nitro. Its supposed to be rated a little better on gas but I'm not sure why.

I have a 2006 diesel and I&#146;m only getting 22mpg if I drive it right. Is there something wrong with my jeep liberty crd 4x4. After 19K it isn&#146;t getting better. Friend of mine regularly gets 25mpg on his 2005. It is expected to get 22-26.I do my calculations myself. Thanks

I was worried about buying the Liberty instead of the Patroit because of gas mileage issues. I figured the Liberty would get around 18mpg and the Patriot around 24. I steered my wife towards the Patriot but she would have no part of it. She wanted a "real truck" and once she drove the Liberty it was all over. The liberty does have the ability to go through much deeper snow the the Patriot and is a real truck. After filling up with 360 miles on the odometer I figured out that we got 21 mpg on our first tank of gas. It stayed at 21 mpg for the second tank now also. This is a mix of 50/50 city / highway driving not exceeding 65 mph or 2000 rpm's to often. The transmission is great and offers a lockup gear so you can let off the gas pedal a bit and watch the rpm's drop a few hundred to 1600 and still be going 60 mph. I think thats the trick to getting good mpg out of the Liberties. At 21mpg I'm glad we went with the Liberty instead of the Patriot and before it switches over to the Nitro style.

have 04 3.7 auto 87k miles if i drive 70 according to my gps i get 18 mpg manual calculations and filling up till gas can't put any more in. if i drive 55 and around 1600 to 1700 rpm with cruise 1 get almost 23 mpg which comes to almost 12 to 15 dollar saving on a tank of gas didn't take to much convencing and thinking about installing a air cell throttle body won't be much but anything helps maybe headers and new exhaust any test results from anyone i would appreciate. would a chip help?

We just finished a trip of about 3,000 miles in our 2006 3.7L Liberty. Averaged 24.5 mpg driving an average 65 mph. And around town in general use it's been getting 22 mpg (summer) and 20 mpg (winter).

so me driving to california isnt going to be a major stop and go as to gas,thats good to hear,i am going after the same model,just either a 06,or 07,i am set on the liberty for the roominess in the front seat area,i dont care anything about size,i just enjoy a nice mid sized car and allowing me to cruise,and not think about anything except where i am going and the time it will take for me to get there.

Don't want to dampen yr. spirits on the liberty but I have never been more disappointed in a Jeep in my life. The Liberty was our 4th and the mileage was beyond miserable. Can't dispute what people are posting but did talk with other local owners and no one was getting this kind of mileage. Jeep/Chrysler/Daimler was beyond worthless to work with. Although the Corp. Product Support group finally eluded to an issue, they would not assist in doing anything to improve the mileage of our vehicle. Within a year and at approx. 6,000 miles we traded for a Hyundai Santa Fe. Amazingly different vehicle and double the mileage. It does what they claim it will do. Hope you have better success then we did. Was not wanting to trade but could not tolerate the issue any longer. I'm totally turned off on Jeep and Chrysler product at this point.

I am new to this group [just added]. I have not seen anyone discuss the practicality or usefulness of updating the fuel injection system [with a system such as Advance Auto's K & N K&N Fuel Injection Performance Kit] which may improve the MPG stats. It costs about $260 if you install it yourself. I do not know the impact on the warranty it may have.

Yep, You are exactly correct. The Hyundai Santa Fe is not "Trail Rated". The last thing we wanted to do was get rid of the vehicle but after "playing the stupid game" with Chrysler and attempting to work with their so-called "customer service group" the agravation and frustration was not worth the fender badge to say we owned a vehicle that was "Trail Rated". I coopperated with them in every fashion for almost a year, hoping we could work out some reasonable solution. There was total disinterest and they lost a loyal customer. We walked away from our 4th Jeep due to "poor" treatment and lack of concern. I am a reasonable person and know what customer care is all about. I manage a customer support group and have done this type of work for 30 years. I can recognize when disinterest is a factor. My focus is to always be fair and objective. Jeep/Chrysler was not. They made a choice and so did I. "Trail Rated" is not worth 50% less mileage and below the supposed standard of other user and consumers. Truth in advertising is also a factor and they were not even close to meeting the EPA advertised mileage values. There is a reason U.S. car manufacturers are losing to the off-shore companies.

" "Trail Rated" is not worth 50% less mileage and below the supposed standard of other user and consumers."

I meant no criticism of your choice. I was merely pointing out that Jeep has focused their energy on making their vehicles off-road capable, and not on fuel efficiency. Those 4WD components are heavy, and the transmission requirements for off-road cause more drag when on road.

I am new to this site as well and wanted to comment on my own 2006 Jeep Liberty Sport. I have to say that I am not all that impressed with the power, styling, mpg, or the terry cloth that the seats are made of! This vehicle is my first new car purchase and from driving friends vehicles that are relatively comparable (Nissan Xterra, Saturn Vue) I am venturing to say that I will also not purchase another Jeep. This post is not meant to be insulting, but the "Trail Rated" tag is overrated. I don't have the confidence to put my stock Jeep up against much of anything else in its class. It is significantly underpowered and the stock 16 inch tires don't instill much confidence offroad. I feel that if Jeep wants to remain competitive with its offshore rivals, they do need to reengineer just about everything with the Liberty.

"This post is not meant to be insulting, but the "Trail Rated" tag is overrated. I don't have the confidence to put my stock Jeep up against much of anything else in its class."

I don't care personally; I don't own or plan to own a Jeep product. But have you taken your jeep off road into serious trail conditions? If you are using it for around town driving, you are not going to be impressed. They are really designed for off road; the in town trade off in less MPG & etc must be looked at as the price one pays for better off road performance. If that "trade off" isn't good for you, then you are not a "Jeep" person.

I have taken my Jeep off road. I live in a very rural area in northwestern PA and some of the roads in the winter are trail like conditions. I've taken it on gas well roads and other places and can't complain but I wouldn't imagine going anywhere that they show on the Jeep ads on tv. I guess my point is that I wish Jeep would focus more on the total driving experience rather than just the off road portion. Sure, there probably are a lot of people that take their Jeep off road, but a majority of the driving is done on the highway. Why not make it the best of both worlds? I'm sure they can find ways to lighten it up so the mpg continuously stays above 20 but still provide a suitable off road vehicle. I would hope "Jeep people" would want a good off road vehicle yet still not have to pay the gas bill of a V-10. I consider my self a Jeep person, but when gas is $3.49/gallon, my first priority is to be an educated consumer and make my money go as far as I can.

" I would hope "Jeep people" would want a good off road vehicle yet still not have to pay the gas bill of a V-10."

No disrespect intended, but you don't sound like a "Jeep person". A Jeep person wants his/her off road capabilities to be paramount.

It is possible to make compromises in off road abilities, but that is not what Jeep is known for. The only non "rated" Jeep is the Compass; I drove one and got about 23 MPH highway (rental). That vehicle was a crossover from the Caliber.

If you want a "part way" off road, there are plenty of candidates - they generally have part time AWD, though some of them lock the low gear. CR-V, RAV4, Grand Vitara, etc. come to mind. And of course there is the Subaru family, which has great 4WD.

In order to make the Jeep sturdy and thoroughly off road capable, they have to make parts a certain way, build stuff a certain way. That "way" is not for fuel efficiency.

I bought a used 2003 Liberty in August 2006 with about 40k miles on it. I now have 128k miles on it (I drive a lot) and overall, I have seen around 17 to 19 mpg. I just put a large Thule cargo box on the roof (to make up for what has long been my biggest gripe with the Liberty: insufficient cargo space) and was worried somewhat that it might adversely impact my fuel economy. After three tanks, I have calculated the average MPG with the box, loaded with gear at 18.47mpg. I was actually surprised it was that good. I guess this is a testament to the aerodynamics of the cargo box, more than anything to do with the Liberty, but I thought it might be good information to post...in case anyone else is as frustrated with the cargo area of their Liberty as I was.

Btw, I was also carrying two mtn bikes on a spare tire mounted rack, as well as a good load of gear inside the Jeep.This fuel economy is very comparable to what I have been getting the last two years or so.

Interestingly, before I bought the Liberty, I was given another liberty (a 2005) as a rental, and it must have had a larger tank, and gotten better mileage. I think when i tested it, I was getting over 20 mpg, and going over 400 miles on a tank of gas. With mine, I only occasionally manage to get much over 300 miles before my fuel light switches on. I have noticed that the 2005 felt lighter and not as solid as the 2003 I ended up getting, so maybe there is a weight factor there.

only have 26k miles on my 03. No problems -- put on a set of bilstein shocks - great ride improvement. If you 've gone 128k miles and still happy, looks like I have 25 more years of happy motoring. Mpg is low 20's on the interstate 65 mph. Short trips around town -- 15-17mpg. A little worse in winter of course.

The Hyundai Santa Fe is not only not "Trail Rated", it is not designed to BETAKEN OFF THE ROAD AT ALL! My best friend does support for Hyundi and he tells me if you even take a Santa Fe on a gravel road you will void the warranty! It is not an off road vehicle it is a cross-over, or in other words, a CAR with a weak all wheel drive system. If you are making comaprisons or have a need for a high milage cross-over then the Jeep Compass would be what your interested in. It is also the only FAIR comparison.I have a 2003 TJ (Wrangler) and a 1988 MJ (Comanche) I get around 20 MPG out of each around town. My friend has the liberty and he gets alot less milege. I haven't figured out why. I think it may be that the L6 engine has alot of low-end torque so I can shift it at low rpm and get good milage.I bought my first Jeep because 4 wheelers were scarce in Florida but I bought the Wrangler because the truck really lasted well. It outlasted by many years my Dads S-10 (4x2) and brothers Ranger (4x4). which were both JUNK.

Well said! I have two Jeeps (TJ & MJ)/ I bought my first jeep because my mustang just didn't do well on the trail to Blue Lake! Many people buy things based on 'immage' rather than function. What you need to look at is the Liberty has the same drive-train (except Ibdependent axels) as the Wrangler. It is an SUV not a corss-over. It gets good milage in it's class dooing what it was made to do. Stick her in low-lock 4wd and it will do ok. It least it is not like a hummer which can't even carry enough gas for a off-road trip!

"area in northwestern PA and some of the roads in the winter are trail like conditions"... Sorry but you have no idea do you. I live in Utah and have more trails than paved roads. I have access to off road trails one mile from home.It is interesting but Hyundi has their suppport people here and recently bought a cherokee to plow their lot because the Hyundi is "too weak".You get what you pay for don't compair a car to a truck. The Liberty I rented and drove in a snow storm from New Hampshire to Conneticut was alot better than the Trail Blazer I rented and drove over Donner Pass when they closed the road to all but 4x4's or chains. The knob came off in my hand and ended driving over in 2wd! It was kinda stupid because there was only AN INCH OR TWO on the road!I remember driving my Comanche in a storm in Conneticut when I was in the Navy when the snow was up to the bumper. I was doing fine and then then I noticed the road markers on the wrong side! I wasn't even on the freeway (I95) Oh, on the Santa Fe, read your owners manual it will say not to allow the tires to spin in snow...this is because it will damage the cable that powers the back wheels! :P

I have a 2003 Liberty Renegade with over 212K on it with the Thule rack - I drive mostly backroads & a little freeway - get about 278 per 15 gal = 18.54 mpg on average don't know if the rack is making a difference or not but from your numbers I would say it does?.....